Dhahran Declaration: Arab leaders highlight nations’ sovereignty

CAIRO – 16 April 2018: The 29th Arab League Summit that was held Sunday Apr. 15 in Dhahran, Saudi Arabia, has issued its final statement, highlighting Arab leaders’ recommendations to protect the sovereignty and unity of Arab nations.

In its closing session, the summit announced Arab Nations’ agreement to continue supporting the Palestinian cause, which is the “central issue” of the Arab world, until the independent Palestinian state is established inside the 1967 borders, with Jerusalem as its capital.

The summit also agreed on the necessity to secure the Arab World from the dangers terrorism poses and to work on combating terrorism and supporting all security, economic, social, cultural and intellectual means to preserve the Arab World’s national security.

The statement also included the need to confront regional intervention in the domestic affairs of Arab countries, in addition to any intervention that targets their social unity and national identity.

Arab leaders have also agreed, according to the statement, to again call on some neighboring countries to exercise the “good neighboring policy” and respect the sovereignty of the Arab countries.

The summit also affirmed, according to the statement, the right of any Arab country to protect its security and stability and to get the full support by other Arab countries, under article 51 of the United Nations (UN) Charter.

The summit ordered that collaboration efforts be accelerated in the economic, social and developmental fields, besides implementing the strategies to achieve sustainable development, the statement read.

Moreover, the summit affirmed the role of the General Secretariat of the Arab League as being responsible of monitoring the execution of the report’s previously mentioned recommendations, in coordination with the member states.

The Palestinian Issue

King Salman said the Palestinian issue will continue being the most important issue to the Arab World, until all Palestinians have attained their legal rights, including the establishment of a Palestinian independent state with Jerusalem as its capital.

King Abdullah II of Jordan said the Arab World has the duty to support the Palestinians, which he called “the callers for peace,” to get their legal rights in establishing the state. “We have to reconfirm on the everlasting right of the Palestinians, Arabs, Muslims and Christians in Jerusalem, which is the key for peace in the region,” he stated.

President Abdel Fatah al-Sisi said, “it is not just the issue of Arabs, but an issue of rightness against force.” He reiterated that the Arab peace initiative is the most suitable solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and that Jerusalem is always the focus of the initiative.

He denounced the lack of resources at UNRWA, and using the Palestinian internal division as a pretext for keeping the status quo.

Last December, Trump reversed decades of U.S. policy by announcing the United States’ recognition of Jerusalem as the capital of Israel and the moving of the U.S. embassy to Jerusalem.

Regional Intervention

Labeling the crisis in the Arab world “the worst” since the independence in the mid-twentieth century, Sisi slammed regional non-Arab interference in Arab states to establish zones of influence. He said that the army of a regional state is deployed in two Arab countries in “blatant occupation” of Arab territory, adding that yet another regional state has worked on creating zones of influence since disability hit several Arab countries in 2011.

In September 2017, the Turkish Parliament extended the deployment of troops in both Iraq and Syria. Meanwhile, Iran has led proxy battles in several Arab countries, including Syria, Iraq, Lebanon and Yemen.

King Salman expressed his strong condemnation to the “Iranian-allied” Houthi militants’ attacks on different cities of Saudi Arabia. He added that Saudi Arabia renews its strong condemnation of Iranian “terrorism” in the region.

“Some 119 missiles were launched by Houthi militants, some of which have targeted the holy city of Mecca,” Salman added.